Romanian lawmakers OK building NATO unit and headquarters in Bucharest due to Ukraine crisis

BUCHAREST, Romania – Romanian lawmakers have unanimously approved a request to build two NATO facilities in Bucharest, the capital, as part of the alliance's new defense strategy in Eastern Europe.

President Klaus Iohannis asked the legislature to approve the units "within the context of the Ukraine crisis (and) the aggressive actions of Russia in the region."

Lawmakers on Tuesday voted 283-0 to back the construction of a NATO Force Integration Unit and a Multinational Division South-East Headquarters, which will coordinate military command in Romania and neighboring Bulgaria. The multinational headquarters will be open in 2016 and fully operational by 2018.

NATO will create similar integration units in Poland, Bulgaria and the three Baltic states — Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania — alliance members on its eastern flank close to Russia.